Council adopts $8.5 M budget

16 years ago

By Elna Seabrooks
Staff Writer

    HOULTON — In a relatively streamlined meeting, the Houlton Town Council unanimously adopted an $8,515,259 budget last Thursday after a public hearing. There were no surprises since the council and the Board of Budget Review (BBR) had been discussing and working on the numbers since November. The final vote on the budget (which was $14,000 less than the final recommendation of the BBR) was 6–0.
    Donald Keiser, BBR chairman, said that the board had met five times before sending its recommendations to the council. The budget panel, he said, voted in a 6–2 majority in favor of the upcoming bond issue to repair roads and sidewalks. He also asked that the council look at upgrading the paint for road markings which might, in the long run, be more cost-effective.
    The budget which had been prepared, reviewed and discussed for months still drew the same criticism from local residents Philip Bernaiche and Stanley Ginish — two members of the planning board that had drawn up the budget. Their reasons to reduce specific line items were rejected by the councilors.
    Bernaiche wanted to cut the public works budget by $30,000. Ginish wanted to eliminate the economic development department which Chairman Paul Cleary and Councilor Walter Goodrich agreed was needed at this time of looming economic distress to encourage business development. He also opposed an SUV for the police department among other line item expenses.
    Cleary and councilors Brian Donnelly and Paul Romanelli, responded to Ginish’s objections on employee benefits saying that some costs are fixed due to labor contracts, and fair practices. Donnelly, a former town employee, remarked that town workers are not making extraordinarily high salaries and were basically great workers.
    The 2009 budget is $79,862 higher than the 2008 budget primarily due to higher fuel costs and a mandated warrant from the school district on its budget which has been estimated. SAD 29 will finalize its budget in June. 
    Before the vote, Romanelli said the budget was realistic; Cleary said it was a good budget.
    The next meeting of the council is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 26 at 6:30 p.m.